For this installment of Top 5 Fridays we're going to take a break from the norm, and look at the man that wields the power of Grayskull, well more accurately we're going to take a look at the most important characters throughout the ages of Eternia that led Prince Adam to claim the Sword of Power.
Now for the everyday reader that might not have grown up being He-Man fanboys and girls, this list might be enlightening to you and might actually open your eyes to a wider world of Eternia that you didn't even know existed beyond a blonde haired dude shouting he has the power. With that though we might also have fanboys and girls like me who think this is nothing new, and dismiss it off hand. I'm willing to take that chance if it means that maybe from reading about stories most people don't know, that a few new readers might get on the trolley and follow the exploits of one of my favorite heroes since I was a small child. So let's dive into this list and see the Top 5 Masters Of The Universe Characters that Led To He-Man. Not to be confused with inspirations that led to the He-Man character, but actual Eternian history and mythology. Let's check it out.
#5. The Goddess
The Goddess or The Sorceress if you prefer is the magical keeper of balance in Eternia. Now you might say "Come on Eric, everyone knows The Sorceress", but what I'm getting at is she played a key part in Prince Adam becoming He-Man. For what I'm going for we at least had to mention her, and that's why she's #5 on the list. So for whatever reason The Goddess has been shown having green skin and having white skin as well, and for our current run of the comics it looks like the new Sorceress Teela will have a green shade added to her. So for the history lesson, after King Grayskull was killed his power was channeled into Castle Grayskull, and knowing that the Sword of Power would be the means to channel that power again, she split it into two halves to make sure it wouldn't fall into the wrong hands. This sword would be kept safe throughout the years until a worthy candidate could be found to wield it's power. So whether you believe The Goddess is actually a deity of Eternia and her powers flow into chosen Sorceresses, or if you believe these characters to be the same you have to admit that she plays a huge part in our hero being who he is.
#4. Wun-Dar
Yeah it looks like a brown haired He-Man with a ray gun, and you'd be right he does, but Wun-Dar is so much more than a dark haired doppelganger. Wun-Dar comes from a hundred years in the past from present Eternian time, and this warrior was bestowed cosmic armor and a ray gun for being the hero that he is when he bravely saved The Goddess from danger. But these tools would only help him in his new task in life. The Goddess trusted Wun-Dar with the responsibility of keeping the two halves of the Sword of Power protected, and out of the hands of evil. Now I don't know about you, but this story makes me want to be selfish person. Well more than I already am. He saves the Goddess and now he has to face danger on the reg, and is busy the rest of his life. Some reward. Yeah he might of got some fancy new threads and a Buck Rogers gun, but is that really worth it? Well that's just me, Wun-Dar is a badass who took on this responsibility, and even took on the name He-Man. What you didn't think that He-Man was the name of the main character did you? He-Man is the name bestowed upon a protector of Eternia, and there's been many a He-Man throughout the ages. So without good 'ole Wun-Dar the Sword of Power might have fallen into the wrong hands, and never reached Prince Adam in the future. Good job Wun-Dar, you will be remembered.
#3. He-Ro
He-Ro is a bit of a strange character simply because he had a back story for a action figure in 1987 that was never released. That back story stated that he was the most powerful wizard in the universe during Prehistoric times in Eternia, or Preternia. But that's not what we're going with. He-Ro was a brave warrior and for being such was given The Sword of Life by The Overlords of the timeless dimension Trolla. (Trolla's the home dimension of Orco if you didn't know.) He was told to go out and be the brave son of a bitch he is and fight evil. Well he did this but was eventually given a techno virus by Horde Supreme and was cast into a vortex which landed him in Eternia. He had his wounds patched up and his techno virus cured, and to show his appreciation he swore allegiance to King Grayskull, and helped the king fight off Snake Men, and The Evil Horde. When the heroic He-Ro finally died he bestowed his sword unto King Grayskull, and that's where we get the current Sword of Power. You got that? Sword of Life + The Power of Grayskull = He-Man as we know him. Good thing He-Ro was cast into that vortex huh?
#2. King Grayskull
Yeah it's a picture from the 2002 Masters of The Universe cartoon series with the Power Sword that everyone hates, but man did I ever love that short lived cartoon. So King Grayskull as you can imagine is the King of Castle Grayskull, and the greatest King in the history of Eternia. Originally King Grayskull defeated Hordak and sent him to the dark dimension, but succumbed to his wounds from the battle and died. His power was placed inside his Sword of Power adding to that of the power it already had when it belonged to He-Ro. His power would also change his closest advisers into the Council of Elders that would lead the people of Eternia from then on. Queen Veena promised to keep the sword safe, and as we see she kept her promise. But last month with the ongoing He-Man and The Masters of The Universe comic by Dan Abnett, we saw a revised history where instead of King Grayskull dying from the battle with Hordak, he was betrayed by the blue skinned "Gar" people, and had his throat slit by his daughter like handmaiden Saryn. It was really epic and you should go get it if you still can. But the coup by the Gar was a ruse set up by King Hiss, and we'll have to see where this story takes us in the future. I truly love King Grayskull and everything that's ever been told about him, and wouldn't mind a series all his own. Okay now we move onto the #1 character that led to He-Man.
#1. Queen Marlena
Do you get it? The #1 character that led to He-Man is his mother Queen Marlena. But that's not what makes this character really interesting. According to her original back story, Queen Marlena was the first female astronaut named Lt. Marlena Glenn. That's right her back story is like a weirder Planet of The Apes, but instead of futuristic Earth where Apes ruled the land, her ship crash landed on Eternia, a world of science and sorcery. Now whether you choose to believe this original back story or not is up to you, I personally feel it adds to the He-Man mythos. So Lt. Marlena Glenn comes to Eternia, woos the King, becomes a Queen, and then gives birth to the most powerful man in the universe, and his twin sister the princess of power. I just had to make Queen Marlena #1 because of that far out origin story.
That's our list for this week, I hope that you more casual He-Man fans found something out that you didn't know prior to this, and I hope the fanboys and girls didn't get too pissed off if they feel I missed something or didn't represent someone well enough. All in all this list is to get people excited about He-Man again, and have it spark their interest enough to go pick up the new He-Man and The Masters of The Universe series by Dan Abnett and Pop Mhan. It's a highlight in my month whenever I get to sit down and travel to the world of Eternia, and I hope it can be the same for you. So go check it out, watch the cartoon, or play with the action figures. I don't care as long as you're getting your love for He-Man on. See you back here in seven as we tackle another list.
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